Quilt without seams.....
 

I've heard about quilts that don't have a lot of matching seams and are easy to make. Do any of you seasoned quilters have a picture you could post to give me an idea of how this is possible. I've been quilting a while, but this has got me stumped.
Thanks, MissJMac

Perhaps?
* whole cloth quilt?
* printed panel?

wonky comes to mind. Check out some of these.
https://www.google.com/search?q=wonk...w=1280&bih=620

I've seen a new technique recently for a quilt that doesn't have any stitching until it's quilted. It looked pretty interesting.

Here's one. Cut strips of fabric. Layer backing fabric and batting (I would heavily starch the backing fabric first). Draw a straight line down the center of the quilt (or snap a chalk line). Line up two strips of fabric right sides together with raw edges along the line. Sew a 1/4" inch seam on that side. Open up (and maybe iron) so that both strips are right sides up. Add another strip and sew that down, flip right side up, add another strip, etc. This has no matching seams, and the quilting is done at the same time as the sewing.

A jelly roll quilt would also be an easy one with no matching seams. I just saw one at the quilt guild that was *fabulous*, made from leftovers of tractor and boy fabrics on the right side. What was unusual was that the quilter sewed *all* of the jelly roll seams before ironing any of them! Turned out great!

Here's a jelly roll quilt variation that includes a border and still doesn't have any matching seams:
http://www.etsy.com/listing/89000268...-easyone-jelly

Edit: I just want to add that it makes a big difference if (1) the quilt has no seams, or (2) the quilt has no matching of seams!

no example?

This is how I make my string quilts except my backing is usually 6 inc squares..my strings are all different widths, and even uneven too...I press as I go, before I add the next string..I should try it with the batting already in...

The Bricks pattern comes to mind. Very simple, but can make an interesting quilt if you select the right fabrics. It can be completely scrappy, or you can make strip sets/tubes that create a stairstep pattern. And, no seams to match.

Darren

I agree with the wonky idea - make the seams mismatch on purpose. Here's one link to such a quilt:

http://www.bighornquilts.com/inspiration/strip/sns.html

Here's another one, it DOES have seams that match, but since they're all in black fabric, if you mis-match them no one will notice! :thumbup:

http://bighornjulie.blogspot.com/200...-part-two.html

There's another type of quilt that doesn't require a lot of matching. I just made one, and I really enjoyed it because it was so easy. Basically you make strip sets, cut those into 10.5" squares, put 2 squares right sides together with strips running horizontally on one and vertically on the other, draw a line from one corner to the other, sew on both sides of the line, then cut apart to make two new blocks. Sounds way more complicated than it is to do! Can't find my pattern at the moment, but one of the McCall's magazine just published a version of it called Cascade. Here is a link to a picture of it:
http://www.mccallsquilting.com/blogs...pretty-quilts/

Although you do need to sew the blocks together, matching seams isn't a big deal because no one is going to notice if you need to shave off a little from one here and there. Also, the outside edges of all the blocks are on the straight-of-grain, so there's no worry of handling a lot of bias edges.

Kathy Schmidt of quirksltd.wordpress.com/ teaches a class in "no rules quilting". I'm including the piece I did in class. I'm going to try another but with fabrics I like better. I just grabbed some stuff from my give away pile for this first effort. I loved the no matching part of this.

Oooh, Prism, thank you for that one! That's a great pattern for charity quilts - adding it to my bookmarks!

Lucky Stars doesn't have a lot of matching. You do match the blocks into rows to form the stars, but the background extends beyond the star points, the rectangles that border the blocks create a brick look when you alternate the placement of the block next to it. The only other seams you match are the intersections between the blocks. The quilt in the picture had only 12 intersections to match. If you alternate the direction you press your seams, they butt up nicely together.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]365875[/ATTACH]

Other than matching up the rows, a Rail Fence doesn't have butting seams.

the same goes for string quilts

I have made a couple of the quilts cut in strips, sewn together add borders and quilted. Strips were cut lengthwise of fabric. Fast and easy no seams at all to match. I used a print for one strip and other solid or blender to match the print, just keep adding strips until it is wide enough.

or here's one with stars. You have to match the blocks up at the corners, but there's no way you can mess up and cut the star points off:
http://www.cluckclucksew.com/2011/06...ar-blocks.html
if you sew them all, you can square them all up to the same size in the end and make the final assembly a snap.

ETA: oh, I see I'm a bit slow today and something similar has been already posted!

Donna Dewberry has some quilts that are done on a fusible stuff and not sewn until the very last thing. Check her out.

String quilts come to mind. Check out the scrappy show on this board. A lot of scrap quilts don't have points etc. that need to match.

i just love the colors in this one.

For anyone interested in the Cascade pattern, or for using that technique to create other quilts, I just wanted to mention that the block size (after cutting, marking, and sewing diagonally across the 10.5" squares) will be a little over 9.5" unfinished. At that point, if you want precision, you can trim the blocks to an exact 9.5" centering your ruler on the diagonal line.

Also, I wanted to mention that a similar technique is used for a quilt pattern called Hidden Wells. Here is a link to that pattern:
http://www.reddawn.net/quilt/hwells.htm

The difference is that Hidden Wells ends up with blocks that have bias edges; the technique used in Cascade has the advantage of sewing the diagonal before cutting *and* of having the block edges end up on the straight-of-grain.

If you can manage the bias edges, Hidden Wells appears to be a very fast and interesting pattern that does not require matching seams. Someone posted here on the QB that a Yahoo group has formed exclusively for the Hidden Wells pattern (as a spinoff from the Stashbusters group). The name of the new group is HiddenWells and you can join at groups.yahoo.com

Last year I made a quilt by Eleanor Burns - it was one of her "quick trip" quilts. YOu sew a bunch of strips together in a set, per the size you are making. Then you cut the strip sets into strips, - easy. Then you sew these strips together and they make a pattern because you offset the seams. This is made easy by simply cutting the first block of the first strip in half so you are offset by the width of 1/2 block and just pedal to the medal. (Maybe similar to something called a brick quilt.) First you sew four pieces, top left, top right, then bottom left and bottom right. Again, you are automatically offset when sewing the top and bottom of each side together, so yet again no matching, because the seams come together being offset. . However, when you sew up the center of the quilt, putting left and right sides together, to complete the quilt top, then you do have to match the seams. That is however, the only seam that is actually matched up. It goes like wildfire. I think Blanche Young used to have this quilt also in one of her books. This is the trip around the world, and on Eleanor's DVD's and her book Quick Trips which is in stores, is readily available. I made three of these, one a king size, and two toddler quilts, and they work up rapidly and are quite striking. If anybody is interested, I could give the directions - (but is that against copyright laws?) I want to obey the rules. I know Eleanor gives the dimensions free on her tv series for the lap size quilt.

Possibly referring to a whole cloth quilt. You draw the pattern onto a plain piece of material, make up a quilt sandwich and then quilt the design.Then you bind the quilt.


http://youtu.be/Gvuobb8zkug

Here's a link to Eleanor Burn's tv show where she demonstrates her her Quick Trip Quilts that much2nice mentioned. they are beautiful and no seams to match as you sew them together. http://quiltinaday.com/theater/3100/3101.html

I just made a quilt from byannie.com, called Wickedly Easy Quilt. The link is: http://www.byannie.com/media/images/...s_patterns.pdf

It was super easy and quick, and only the block seams have to match. [ATTACH=CONFIG]366044[/ATTACH]I made it as a hostess gift for my college roommate who has graciously opened up her home to my husband, myself, our son, DIL and DGD while we visit my mom and celebrate her 88th birthday next month. Hope she likes it.

I agree that Eleanor Burns'Quick Trip Around the World
is a great one for not having to match seams. The only seam you have to match is the last one. I have some pics here in my album: http://www.quiltingboard.com/members...bums17442.html

I love this! Very modern and I love the colors! People who think they don't like "quilts" would love this one, I think. Terrific job!

I love this, too! It's pure art, like an abstract painting. Your former roommate will love it!

trying looking up the tutorials at Missouri Star Quilt company - Jenny has mentioned in several of her tute's that you dont' have to match seams. here's link to one of the patterns
http://quiltingtutorials.com/all/dou...uilt-tutorial/
http://quiltingtutorials.com/all/lay...ly-roll-quilt/

The Big Block patterns doesn't have any matching seams. It's easy to make and is gorgeous when done. http://www.clotilde.com/detail.html?prod_id=14924

here is one with no seams to match
http://www.quiltersgardenonline.com/...Seams-Easy.htm
and this one
http://www.equiltpatterns.com/quiltp...roducts_id=228
and i think there is a no point stars quilt pattern out there too, can't find it right now.

My 9 year old granddaughter made one for the Columbia county Faith this year. Sew strips of varying widths together. when you have a 10 inch wide piece, cut it in 10 inch squares, sew 2 squares together around the outside, cut both ways across corner to corner X , then sew the little blocks together. No seams to match. She wond Best of Show in Textile Division, and made it last year when she was only 8. Her's is small but you can just keep adding blocks until it is the size you want. There is a small picture of it on the home page of the web site.

What comes to my mind is the 10 minute blocks by Suzanne McNeil.

The quilt I just finished doesn't have many - if any - seams to match up and it was a breeze to make
Oriental Garden spotlight.com.au/inspiration/projects/oriental-garden-<wbr>quilt. I made mine with only two colors (long story. I didn't want to but ended up doing it that way...

The other one that comes to mind is the Quick Trip around the World which I saw on tv. It's an Eleanor Burns quilt. It isn't the Trip Around the World quilt which has tons of points to match up. The quick trip uses rectangles and has no seams to match up at all.

Of course, there is Yellow Brick Road and Disappearing 9-Patch. Go to utube for instructions for the Disappearing 9-Patch.

Here's an EASY one it's the 1600 jelly roll quilt. The info is self explanatory.

http://katiesquiltingcorner.com/2011...roll-1600.html

Quilts w/o Seams: Fabric 108 wide or so; layred and and then just quilted; full whole cloth--quilted and bound. The quilting makes it a quilt but not a pieced quilt. Hope this helps. Usually this is done on white or off white fabric with colored threads or any solid color with the quilting in a different color thread.

Yellow brick road, CrazyQuilts, etc. By not having matching seams...they don't mean seam free. A nine patch block has matching seams...even a 4 patch has a matching seam (your 4 squares have to match at the center).